News & Events

Australia’s ‘Godfather of cuisine’ Tony Bilson Lutèce-bound

Lutèce Bistro & Wine Bar and Romain Bapst will be handing over the kitchen reins to Tony Bilson, Australia’s ‘Godfather of cuisine’, for a series of spectacular dinners this June.

The bohemian chef and restaurateur will deliver his signature fare during two five-course dinners and three-course lunches on June 17 and 18, and a cooking class on the morning of the Wednesday.

Credited with influencing the way Australia traditionally ate before ‘celebrity chefs’, Bilson is the culinary genius behind iconic restaurants like Bilson’s, Berowra Waters Inn and Number One Wine Bar, while he also mentored now-famous chefs such as Tetsuya Wakuda.

For $198 and a five-course evening feast with matching wines, guests will experience a night of Bilson’s distinct cuisine with dishes so unique to have been legally copyrighted.

The evening’s starts with a decadent appetizers of the Australian fresh black truffle from Manjimup . The first course is a carpaccio of eel with caviars, a combination of ingredients and technique so unique, that it’s been under copyright since 2010.

The second, also solely Bilson’s in creativity and law, is the night’s third course: the French-inspired grilled confit of duck, stuffed with foie gras, and served with ratte potatoes, ceps and pig trotter sauce Bordelaise.

Other menu items include a matelote of lingfish with a warm salad of clam, mussels and lobster, and to finish theBaba with pear “comme une Tatin”, Crème anglaise & Chocolate Louis XV for dessert.

Bilson considers himself not a chef but an artist driven by many appetites from wine to women, inspired by the French Belle Epoque movement and the bohemians who gathered in Sydney in the 1970s. He bought his first restaurant in 1969 for $7,000.

A three-course lunch by Bilson with matched wines will also be available on June 17 and 18 for $95. Both dinners will be $165 for the five-courses and a glass of champagne on arrival, or $198 with matching wines.

Our Event Partner is Meerea Park Wines located in the Hunter Valley.

Bookings are essential and can be made on (07) 3161 1858 or by emailing bookings@lutece.com.au.